Marker for corn-planters.



R. W. E. HAYES.

MARKER FOR CORN PLANTERS.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 1 I, 1917.

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Patented Feb. 5,1918.

I R. w. E. HAYES. MARKER FOR CORN PLANTERS.

APPI. ICAT10N FILED SEPT. 1 h 19!].

1,%5,5m Patented Feb. 5,1918.

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@TAlFd RALPH W. E. HAYES, OF GALVA, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR 0F ONE-HALF TOHAYES PUMP 8c PLANTER COMPANY, OF GALVA, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION OFILLINOIS.

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Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. 5, 191%.

Application filed September 11, 1917. Serial No. 190,728.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, RALPH V. E. HAYES, a citizen of the United States,residing at Galva, in the county of Henry and State of. Illinois, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Markers for Corn-Planters, of which the following is a specification.

The present invention relates to the construction and arrangement ofvarious portions of a marker attachment which is applied to cornplanters, and which is used for the purpose of guiding the operator toproperly position the machine when it is turned from the end of one rowto begin the planting of another row.

One of the objects of the invention is to utilize a standard portion ofthe machine, namely, the scraper bar, as a carrying member for thepivotal mountings for the marker arms. A further object of the inventionis to provide means for anchoring said pivotal mountings in position,which anchoring means will be attached to a portion of the frame of themachine, and the term frame as used in the specification and claims isintended to include the axles which carry the wheels.

Afurther object of the invention is to provide a connection between themarker arm mountings and scraper rod, whereby said rod may revolvewithout revolving said mountings, and to further provide means toprevent said mountings from having a longitudinal movement relatlve' tosaid rod.

A further object of the invention is to provide a depending lug ormember from the mounting which will permit of an anclioring member beingattached thereto in a manner to extend either parallel with the scraperrod or at right angles thereto, as may be desired, and further, toattach this anchoring member to the frame of the planter.

A further object of the invention is to provide a simple and efficientmeans for firmly clamping the marker to the end of the marker rod, andat the same time enable the employment of a rod of small diameter forcarrying the marker.

The invention further consists in the features of construction andcombination of parts hereinafter described and claimed.

In the drawings: Figure 1 is a plan view of a corn planter of thetwo-wheeled type, equipped with the devices of the present invention;

Fig. 2, a plan view of a corn planter of the four-wheeled type, equippedwith the devices of the present invention;

Fig. 3, a sectional detail of the marker arm mounting, with the bent endof the arm therein, and showing it applied to the end of the scraperrod, said arm being shown 1n downward position by means of full linesand in upward position by means of dotted lines;

Fig. 4, a detail showing a face view of the arm mounting, with the bentend of the arm in place therein;

Fig. 5, a perspective of said mounting,

with the bent end of the arm in place; Fig. 6, a detail showing themounting in position upon the scraper rod and the anchoring means ofFig. 2;

Fig. 7, an enlarged detail on line 7-7 of Fig. 6, looking in thedirection of the arrows; V

Fig. 8, a detail face view of the connection between the markerimplement and marker arm; and

Fig. 9, a section on line 99 of Fig. 8. looking in the direction of thearrow. 7 i

In the art to which the present invention relates, evices are now knownunder the title of markers which serve to place an indicating line whilethe planter is moving in one direction, so that when the planter isturned to retraverse the field, a mark is made showing the properposition for the next furrow. In this way the furrows are made atregular intervals across the field.

Referring now to the drawings, and particularly to'Fig. 1, the device asthere shown is applied to an ordinary corn planter of the two-wheeledtype. The planter comprises the carrying and supporting frame consistingof the rails or bars 10 and axles 11, both of these parts being embracedunder the one term frame. Attached to and carried by the frame is ascraper rod 12 of the usual and ordinary construction, and

which is rocked back and forth by means of the lever arrangement 13. Asis well understood, when this bar is rocked, the

' scrapers 14 are brought into engagement with the wheels to scrape offthe accumulated mud and dirt. In the present invention, I utilize thisscraper rod as the carrying means for the mountings of the marker arms,thus dispensing with the use of any separate carrying means therefor.

These mountings, designated by the general numeral 15, comprise asleeve-like portion 16 adapted to fit over one end of the scraper rodand is journaled or pivoted upon said rod, so that the rod is capable ofa free rocking movement within said sleeve portions. The said sleeveportions are provided with elongated slots 17 through which extends apin 187that also passes through the scraper rod. This pin provides meansfor preventing longitudinal movement of the mountings ofi' from thescraper rods, but the elongated slot enables the scraper rod to'roc'lrwithout imparting movement to the sleeve. Extending downwardlyfrom the sleeve portion of the mounting is a lug or boss 19, which, asshown, is of a flat faced construction and has an opening 20'therethrough.

In the construction of Fig. 1, there is an anchoring rod 21, which isplaced through the opening 20 and through an opening in the axle 11.This rod is of a light nature and when so positioned is held in place bymeans of nuts 22, or other suitable locking members fixed to each endthereof. This rod is an anchoring member for the mounting 15, and itinsures said mounting being held against any rotative movement withrespect to the scraper rod. Since it is possible that owing to friction,etc., the mounting might revolve with the rod even though it ispivotally mounted thereon, the employment of the anchoring member 21 isdesired, and by the use of anchoring means any turning movement of themounting is efiectively prevented. V y 7 I Extending outwardly from thesleevelike portion 16 is a socket member 23 having an opening 24therein. This opening is substantially circular at its lower end 25 andelongated at its upper end 26, and is therefore of a tapered nature,although the side walls 27. of said opening are substantially straightup and down, giving a substantially uniform width to the slot. It is tobe noted that this socket member is. placed at a downwardly inclinedangle from the remainder of the mounting, the purpose of which willappear hereinafter.

Inserted within the opening ofthis socket member is a-bent end 28 of amarker arm 29, and as will be seen fromFig, 3, the angle between, thebent portion and the remainder I of the, marker arm is more than ninetydegrees. A cotter pin 30, or other member, is

engagement with the marker arm.

employed to prevent the arm from being pulled out from the opening inthe socket. It is, of course, desirable to employ a small sized rod forthe marker arm. There is sub stantially no strain upon this rod, and ifit can be made of small diameter, it lessens the weight and cheapens thecost of the appliance.

It would be difficult to attach a marker implement to the end of a smallsized arm by the use of the ordinary attaching means. In the presentinvention, I utilize a marker consisting of a sheet of metal 31 properlyconfigured at one end for performing a marking operation on the ground.At its opposite end the metal is bent back upon itself to overlie thearm and form a short, downwardly extending portion 32 and a long,downwardly extending portion 37, this latter having its end configuredto perform the marking operation. The end portion 32 is provided with anelongated slot 33, and the portion 37 is provided with a registeringopening 36. The fastening member consists of a stem 34 threaded at oneend to receive a nut 35, said stem extending through the opening 36 inthe elongated portion 37 of the marker.

The opposite end of the stem 34 from which the nut 35 is attached, is,as shown, bent into the form of an eye 38, which forms a head thereon;and the length of the slot 33 is such as to allow this head to partiallyextend therethrongh (see Fig. 9). Accordingly, one portion of the headwill be brought into engagement with the periphery of the marker arm 29,and when the nut 35 is tightened, this head is drawn into firmengagement with the rod and with the body of the marker, so that thehead and nut cooperate to lock the marker member in firm Owing to thefact that the head 38 is partially seating within the opening 33, thestem 34 will be held, by engagement with. the walls of the slot 33,against a turning movement when the nut is manipulated to move it totight or loose position, thus making the application and removal of themarker very easy. A cord or cable 39 extends from one marker arm to theother and passes through eyes 40 on the frame of the machine. Knots orother abutments 41 are placed adjacent each end of the cable.

Referring now to Fig. 1, the planter as there shown is assumed to betraveling in the direction of the arrow. lVhen a turn is made to theleft, the operator will make the turn substantially upon the pivot ofthe marker member which is then in the ground. Such turning movementwill cause the marker at the left of Fig. 1 to move inwardly, slackingthe cable 39; and the marker arm to the right will, through the actionof gravity, take up this slack and 28 of the marker arm 29 is bent.

It will be recalled that this bend is such as to place an angle morethan ninety degrees between said end and the remainder of the arm. As anarm turns, the bent end will turn within the opening 24:; but owing tothe fact that said end is lying at an angle to the remainder of the arm,it cannot turn with a true pivotal movement about the oenter of the bentportion, but as it turns upward, the said bent portion will be forcedfrom the inclined position shown by the full lines in Fig. 3 to thevertical position shown by the dotted lines in Fig. 3, and this will, ofcourse, cause an upward movement of the arm as it is swung inward.

When the arm swings downward, directly the converse takes place, and itis given an outward and downward movement by the bent end moving fromthe dotted vertical position of Fig. 3 to the angular full line positionof said figure. By sloping the socket member as shown with respect tothe sleeve portion 16, the arm when lowered extends in the correctdiagonal position to bring the marker to the ground line, since owing tothe position of the marker upon the scraper rod, said mounting isnecessarily held away a relatively substantial distance from the ground,and the marker arm must therefore extend downward when in outwardposition in order to bring the marker member into proper position tocontact the ground.

Referring now to Fig. .2, the description of the parts shown in Fig. 1is applicable thereto, except that in the case of Fig. 2, a four-wheeledplanter is illustrated, and in such construction, it is deemed moredesirable to extend the anchoring rod or bar 21 to the rear bar 42 ofthe frame instead of to the axles. Owing to the flat faced constructionof the lug 19, the bar can be placed in this position net as readily asin the position of Fig. 1, the difference being that in the case of Fig.1, the anchored rod 21 extends through the opening 20 and a nut or otherfastening means is placed upon the end of the rod. In the case of Fig.2, the anchoring member 21 is placed with its face against the face ofthe lug 19 and a locking bolt 13 inserted through an opening in theanchoring member 21 and the opening 20 in the lug. In all otherrespects, the construction and arrangement of the parts of Figs. 1 and 2are identical. In Fig. 1 the anchoring rod extends in a direction crosswise of the scraper bar; and in Fig. 2, it extends in a directionparallel to the craper bar.

All parts of the device are interchangeablethat is, they can be usedupon either side of the machineand the appliance is extremely cheap andsimple of construction and will be found durable under the usual andordinary conditions of operation. Although the invention has beendescribed with considerable particularity, it is not deemed to limit thescope of the invention in any manner than may be by the terms of theappended claims.

I claim:

1. In a marker attachment for planters, the combination with a planterframe and a scraper bar rotatably mounted on said frame, of marker armsarranged at each side of the frame, a member associated with each ofsaid arms to provide a pivotal mounting for one end thereof, one of saidmountings being journaled upon each end of the scraper bar, whereby saidbar may rotate without rotating the mounting, means for preventinglongitudinal movement of said mountings with respect to the scraper bar,and a marker member 011 each of said marker arms, substantially asdescribed.

2. In a marker attachment for planters, the combinationwith a planterframe and a scraper bar rotatably mounted on said frame, of marker armsarranged at each side of the frame, a member associated with each ofsaid arms to provide a pivotal mounting for one end thereof, one of saidmountings being journaled upon each end of the scraper bar, whereby saidbar may rotate without rotating the mounting, means for preventinglongitudinal movement of said mountings with respect to the scraper bar,a marker member on each of said marker arms, and an anchoring memberconnected to each of said mountings and to a portion of the frame,substantially as described.

3. In a marker attachment for planters, the combination with a planterframe and a scraper bar rotatably mounted thereon, of marker armsarranged upon each side of said frame, a sleeve journaled upon each endof the scraper bar, whereby said bar may revolve without revolving saidsleeves, a socket portion extending from each of said sleeves, eachsocket portion forming a pivotal mounting for one end of a marker arm,means for holding said sleeves against longitudinal movement on thescraper rod, and marker members on each of said marker arms,substantially as described.

4. In a marker attachment for planters, the combination with a planterframe and a scraper bar rotatably mounted thereon, of

marker arms arranged upon each side of said frame, a sleeve journaledupon each end of the scraper bar, whereby said bar may revolve withoutrevolving said sleeves, asocket portion extending from each of saidsleeves, each socket portion forming a pivotal mounting for one end of amarker arm, means for holding said sleeves against longitudinal movementon the scraper rod, marker members on each of said marker arms, and ananchoring member connected to each of said mountings and to a portion ofV the frame, substantially as described.

5.. The combination With the frame of a corn planter and a scraper barrotatably mounted on said frame, of a marker attachment comprisingmarker arms arranged upon each side of said frame, a sleeve journaledupon each end of said bar, said sleeve being formed With oppositeelongated slots, a pin extending through said slots and through saidscraper bar, a socket portion extending from each of said sleeves, eachsocket portion forming a pivotal mounting for an end of a marker arm,and a marker member on the end of each marker arm, sub- 'on the end ofeach of said marker arms, substantially as described.

.7. In a marker attachment for planters, the combination with a planterframe and a scraper bar rotatably mounted on said frame, of marker armsarranged at each side of the frame, a member associated with each ofsaid arms to provide a pivotal mounting for one end thereof, one of saidmountings being journaled upon each end of the scraper bar, whereby saidbar may rotate Without rotating the mounting, means for preventinglongitudinal movement of said mountings With respect to'the scraper bar,a marker member on each of said marker arms, a lug extending from eachof said mountings, and an anchoring member connected to each of saidlugs and to a portion of said frame, substantially as described.

8. In a marker attachment for planters, the combination with a planterframe and a scraper bar rotatably mounted on said frame, of marker armsarranged at each side of the frame, a member associated with each ofsaid arms to provide a pivotal mounting for one end thereof, one of saidmountings being journaled upon each end of the scraper bar, whereby saidbar may rotate Without rotating the mounting, means for preventinglongitudinal movement of said mountings with respect to the so nper bar,a marker member on each of said marker arms, a lug extending from eachof said mountings, an anchoring member connected to said lugs and to aportion of said frame, and said lugs being arranged to receive ananchoring member extending cross- Wise of the scraper bar or ananchoring member extending longitudinally of said bar, substantially asdescribed.

9. In a. marker attachment for corn planters, the combination with aplanter frame and a scraper bar revolubly mounted on said frame, ofmarker arms arranged upon each side of said frame, a. sleeve at each endof the scraper bar journalel thereon, a socket portion on each of saidsleeves forming a pivotal mounting for an end of a. marker arm,oppositely-disposed elongated slots in said sleeve, a pin extendingthrough said slots and through the scraper bar, a lug depending fromsaid sleeve, an anchoring member connected to said lug and to a portionof the frame, and a marker member on each of said arms, substantially asdescribed.

10. In a marker attachment for corn planters, the combination with aplanter frame and a scraper rod revolubly mounted on said frame, ofmarker arms arranged upon each side of said frame, a sleeve at each endof the scraper bar journaled thereon, a lug extending from said sleeve,an anchoring member connected to said lug and to a part of the frame, adownwardly inclined socket portion associated with each sleeve, each ofsaid sockets serving as a pivotal mounting for an end of a. marker arm,and marker members on each of said arms, substantially as described.

RALPH WV. E. HAYES.

Copies of this patent may be. obtained for, five cents each, byaddressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington. D. (1.

